Deputy Defense Minister for Arms Procurement Vladimir Popovkin said the Defense Ministry would purchase the first 6 to 10 aircraft after 2012, based on the outcome of initial tests. He said the fighter will be superior to similar U.S. models.

The prime minister said 30 billion rubles (around $1 billion) had already been spent on the project and another 30 billion would be required to complete it, after which the engine, weaponry and other components would be upgraded.

He said the fighter would have a service life of 30-35 years, if modernization and upgrades are factored in, and would be around three times cheaper than its foreign analogs

Russia's only known fifth-generation project is Sukhoi's PAK FA and the current prototype is the T-50. It is designed to compete with the U.S. F-22 Raptor, so far the world's only fifth-generation fighter, and the F-35 Lightning II.

Russia has been developing its newest fighter since the 1990s. The country's top military officials have said the stealth fighter jet with a range of up to 5,500 km should enter service with the Air Force in 2015.

The PAK FA is to be armed with next-generation air-to-air, air-to-surface, and air-to-ship missiles, and has two 30-mm cannons.

Western aircraft are reliable and durable, but Russian aircraft have the brute force, more powerful engines, more powerful radar, more maneuverable etc.

So its a balance of both that works best.

Technically Western > Russian. Western aircraft have better tech but Russian aircraft are designed to take out better tech aircraft.

Russia's doctrine is to take out quality with quantity.

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i still remember the programme dogfights on history channel,every ear ,every fight shown in it had some american plane always shooting down Russian planes,though the opposite side was never shown on the programme,but for the one which r shown ur theory stick relevant

i still remember the programme dogfights on history channel,every ear ,every fight shown in it had some american plane always shooting down Russian planes,though the opposite side was never shown on the programme,but for the one which r shown ur theory stick relevant

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Ah, yes, the show was a little ridiculous, however, the one about future dogfights,

The Sukhoi Company has completed the preliminary on-land and in-flight activities which involved all three engineering prototypes of the Frontline Aviation Advanced Airborne Complex (PAK FA) â€“ the 5th-generation aircraft.

These prototypes were used for test-bed strength tests, on-land optimization of fuel systems and other work towards flight trials. The flying prototype has made 16 flights. Today, the optimization of aircraft and its safety systems enables execution of a complete program of flight trials, announced the Director General of Sukhoi Mikhail Pogosyan today at the press conference at the Farnborough International Airshow-2010 Press Center.

The PAK FA took to the air on January 29 in Komsomolsk-na-Amure. The acceptance trials of the flying prototype were fully completed in late March. In April the first flying prototype of the fighter and the avionics testbed used for systems optimization before flight trials were delivered to the flying test center of the OKB Sukhoi Experimental Design Bureau in Zhukovsky near Moscow.

Upon completion of the required on-bed preliminary tests of the systems, including the static exampleâ€™s strength testing, on-land optimization of the avionics testbed and of the flying prototype, on April 29 the aircraft started preliminary tests.

Compared to the previous generation fighters, the PAK FA features a number of unique capabilities, including the functions of a strike aircraft and fighter. The fifth-generation aircraft is fitted with essentially new avionics integrating the function of â€œan electronic pilotâ€ and with an advanced phased antenna array radar. This considerably reduces the pilot fatigue, enabling the pilot to concentrate on performance of a tactical mission.

The new aircraftâ€™s onboard equipment makes it possible to exchange information in the real time mode both with on-land control stations and with aviation group aircraft. The use of composite materials and innovative technologies, and the aerodynamic streamlining ensure unprecedented radar, optic and infrared stealthiness. This significantly enhances the operational capability against aerial and ground targets in all weathers, day and night.

Vladimir Popovkin, the Russian First Deputy Defense Minister, in his interview to the Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper, estimated the Russian Air Forceâ€™s demand for the 5th-generation fighters at 50 to 100 units. It is planned to complete all tests of the PAK FA airframe in 2011-2012, and to sign a contract in 2013 for a pilot lot of ten aircraft for testing the modelâ€™s entire weapons suite.